With just a few items of business on their agenda Tuesday, members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners appeared to be on pace for a quick adjournment.

Concerns voiced by visitors over two major proposals, however, wound up yielding the biggest news from the 35-minute session.

Objections were raised regarding a proposed senior center in Sturgis, with equal condemnation given to a potential plan to promote

St. Joseph County to the Chicago-area market in hopes of luring retirees to settle permanently in the county.

Both plans remain a work in progress and neither has been approved by the five-member commission.

Florence Township resident Tim Carls, a frequent attendee at the meetings, repeated a request he made March 5, when he asked Commissioner Don Eaton be removed from the county’s Agricultural Committee.

Carls also suggested Eaton’s pay for the commission’s Feb. 19 meeting be docked following sharp words he expressed in response to a resident’s comment regarding the proposed marketing strategy.

“It’s kind of rude that we peasants out here that don’t live in his district don’t have a vote against him, yet he can abuse us like that,” Carls said. “And I’d like to see him removed from the Agricultural Committee; he does

not represent any type of agriculture.”

Meanwhile, Lois Ware of Sturgis read to commissioners a two-page letter she penned to Lynn Coursey, director of the St. Joseph County Commission on Aging.

Ware, who attended the commission’s March 5 meeting to criticize a proposed Sturgis senior center, had a list of 19 questions she posed to Coursey.

Ware said she plans to keep commissioners updated on whether she receives a reply.

Constantine resident Dan Lucas took the floor next and urged commissioners to rethink the proposed marketing plan. He said the county should be patient and gauge the result of its affiliation with Southwest Michigan First for economic development-related work before engaging in the marketing plan.

“We need jobs, that’s what we need,” Lucas said, noting the condition of secondary roads throughout the county would better benefit its residents than a marketing campaign. “Let’s invest in our infrastructure here so if we do go down this route and advertise with somebody, we’ve got some decent roads.”

Fabius Township resident Andrew Grant, who objects to the proposed Sturgis senior center, said he opposes government money to create a new level of government.

He said it doesn’t appear the majority of the public has asked for a Sturgis senior facility.

“I’m sick and tired of money coming out of people’s pockets for programs we don’t ask for, we don’t require and we don’t need … I’ve had enough,” he said.

Page 2 of 2 - Dennis Bohm of Centreville questioned the Commission’s decision to consolidate equalization services with Cass County and not retain current equalization director Judy Nelson.

He also questioned the hiring of county administrator Pat Yoder without posting the position first and asked why the board did not remain a seven-member panel.

“I’d also like to know what we have to do to get a time limit on you folks, because you’ve been in too long,” Bohm said, mocking the board’s three-minute time limit for public comment.